


Bandcamp

by sirsparklepants



Series: Gig Economy AU [3]
Category: The Witcher (TV), Wiedźmin | The Witcher - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Non-Magical, Frenemies, Jaskier is a soundcloud musician, Yennefer is an instagram influencer
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-31
Updated: 2021-01-31
Packaged: 2021-03-17 11:08:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 925
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29099319
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sirsparklepants/pseuds/sirsparklepants
Summary: Yennefer first heard of Julian Pankratz when Fringilla tagged her in the public comments for one of his little meme videos. Specifically, one taking a rather childish potshot at her.
Relationships: Background, Geralt z Rivii | Geralt of Rivia/Yennefer z Vengerbergu | Yennefer of Vengerberg, pre-OT3 - Relationship
Series: Gig Economy AU [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2134953
Kudos: 10
Collections: Read





	Bandcamp

Yennefer first heard of Julian Pankratz when Fringilla tagged her in the public comments for one of his little meme videos. Specifically, one taking a rather childish potshot at her. Yennefer didn’t respond, of course. Not only would Philippa have murdered them both with her alligator leather heels for taking attention away from her gal pal scandal, giving Fringilla attention only ended well for Yennefer about half the time.

It certainly wasn’t the first such insult Yennefer had received, anyway. Her DMs were full of people just dying to call her every name in the book. She was rather inured to it by now. At least this one was rather creative. Yennefer found herself unmuting the video. Just for curiosity’s sake.

Hearing her own voice autotuned to sing along with - was that an electric mandolin? - was a little jarring, if only because Yennefer knew her actual singing voice sounded nothing like that - it was nasal, with a tendency to go flat. Julian Pankratz had made her sound rather good, actually, and the song was rather catchy. If she responded to it at all, it would probably go viral.

Well. Yennefer certainly wasn’t as insulted as she could have been, but she was nowhere near that generous. She could be just as petty as this little buttercup.

_you have a real talent, you know_ , she sent him via DM, and waited. And that, as they say, was that.

Except, of course, it wasn’t.

Two weeks after he’d shown up at her temporary doorstep, burning with fever and spitting bloody pus, Julian Pankratz released a new song. Yennefer didn’t note this. She was far too busy with her own ventures, her will-they-won’t-they fauxmance with Istredd reaching a fever pitch that brought thousands of eyes onto her content. It was only when she was relaxing with a glass of red wine, answering business emails and catching up on correspondence from the Lodge members, that she saw it.

_Isn’t this that musician you like, Yenna?_ Triss had sent her. This new one seems pretty personal. :laughing emoji:

Knowing Triss, that could mean almost anything. Yennefer opened the soundcloud link with some reluctance. But as the song went on, she began to smile, and then to laugh. Oh, this was delightful. And Julian thought this was insulting? Referring to her as a destroyer of hearts, a storm? Oh, certainly, it had come from the pen of a man - a man who wasn’t straight, yes, but a man, who had the attendant male fragility and blind spots. But Yennefer’s main audience was men, men who loved the idea of the wild, seductive heartbreaker, the storm that they either wished to tame or be rolled over by. Oh, this was just perfect, especially as she intended to end her fauxmance soon, whatever Istredd had to say about it. She had a new prospect on the horizon, one that was quite a bit more interesting - especially as it would certainly get dear Julian’s goat.

Before she finished with her emails, Yennefer sent off two more. One was to her agent. The other was to her PA to rearrange her schedule of appearances by a few days. Not much. She glanced at her chain of messages with Geralt and smiled, finishing her wine.

* * *

“Fuck,” Jaskier said, when he finished reading his email. “Fuck!”

Geralt, from the bed across from his, didn’t even look up at him. Just grunted. Grunted, in the face of Jaskier’s clear distress.

“I have a recording contract,” Jaskier moaned.

Geralt did look up from his Gwent deck at that. “Thought that was a good thing,” he said.

Jaskier sighed and flopped back onto the bed, the very picture of existential despair. “Usually, yes,” he said gloomily. “But it’s for that harpy, Yennefer of Vengerburg - or her agent, which works out to the same thing. She heard my song, she said. She _likes_ it. Wants it to be her _theme song_.”

“She likes the song you wrote for her,” Geralt said. His tone stated, rather than implied, that he thought Jaskier was a first class idiot.

“She wasn’t supposed to like it, Geralt!” Jaskier cried, turning over with a pillow clutched in his arms. “I wrote it to pay her back for taking advantage of you in Rinde! It was a burn song!”

Geralt, strangely, flushed. It was just a dusting of color across his cheekbones, hardly noticeable, except that Jaskier was always watching. “She didn’t take advantage of me,” he said, a bit strangled.

Jaskier frowned and sat up. “You mean she didn’t pressure you to experience her garden of earthly delights with the threat that she could turf me out of my sickbed at any moment?” he asked.

“ _No_ ,” Geralt gritted out. “It was all fully consensual. I didn’t realize you were awake for any of that.”

“Yes, you might have asked first if you were going to fuck in the next room with the door open,” Jaskier said absently, frowning. This time he did miss the deepening wash of color on Geralt’s face. “All right, in that case, I feel a bit better about already emailing her agent back and accepting. Can you drop me in Novigrad in the next few days?”

“You already accepted?” Geralt asked.

“Yes, well, it’s guaranteed royalties, my dear, and we are dead broke. I intended to be very cutting to her next I saw her, if it helps.”

Geralt looked amused now. “I’ll be sure to let her know,” he said, and no matter how much Jaskier squawked, he refused to elaborate.


End file.
